This invention relates to an image pickup apparatus having a plurality of image pickup means.
JP-A-7-7653 (Document 1), for example, describes the background art of concern. It is an object of Document 1 “to provide a multi-output image pickup apparatus having lower power consumption, smaller capacity and lower cost than before by processing signals from a plurality of image pickup devices by a smaller number of signal processors than the number of the image pickup devices” and Document 1 discloses the following technology as a solution.
“Signals from n solid state image pickup devices are allocated by a first signal selection circuit to k image signal processors. After processed by the image signal processors, the k signals are allocated by a second signal selection circuit to m output devices. Signal selection by the first and second signal selection circuits is executed by a control circuit. Control data of the image signal processor corresponding to each image pickup device connected to the first signal selection circuit is stored in the control circuit. Connection of the selected image pickup device among the n image pickup devices and the selected output device among the m output devices is stored in the control circuit, too”.
JP-A-2000-341719 (Document 2) is also known which aims “to acquire a stereo camera that synchronizes a plurality of cameras without using an external synchronization circuit and outputs image signals with less variance of luminance” and discloses the following construction as a solution.
“In a stereo camera having a plurality of image pickup systems including lenses 2a, 2b, image pickup devices 3a, 3b, gain control means 4a, 4b for amplifying output signals of the image pickup devices and signal processing means 5a, 5b for converting the output signals of the image pickup devices to image signals, the stereo camera has timing signal generation means 6b for outputting a driving signal for commonly driving a plurality of image pickup devices and the signal processing means and a composite sync signal, etc, and exposure adjustment means 7b constituted by exposure detection means 8b for detecting an image pickup device output signal and exposure time calculation means 9b for calculating an exposure adjustment value from the detection value outputted from the exposure detection means and a predetermined exposure adjustment target value, wherein the timing signal generation means is controlled by the output of the exposure time calculation means.